Piotr Jerwa Biography [2/2]

[majesiu 58]

Piotr Joe Jerwa Biography

Defenceman Age: 21

Height: 6' 3", Weight: 218 lb.

Birthplace: Witów, Lesser Poland Voivodeship

Birthdate: 2nd of the December of 1991

VHLM Drafted: 20th Overall (S63)

VHL Drafted: 9th Overall (S64)   

Childhood

Piotr Joe Jerwa was born in small Góral village of Witów in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, Poland, just below biggest Mountains in the region - Tatry, that belong to Carpathia Mountain Range. He is the great-grandson of one of the first Polish-born NHL players Joe Charles Jerwa, that played there between 1928–1942, able to pass his passion for the hockey game three generations as he and his brother were still family heroes to the part of the genealogical tree that returned to their motherland later in their lives. As everyone living in Southern Poland he had a huge love for winter sports and dabbled in almost every discipline that was possible to try using multitudes of nearby training facilities, whether there were team or individual it didn't really matter, as he was equally keen to try them all, especially among ice sports: Bobsled, Luge, Skeleton, Speed Skating, Short Track Speed Skating, even he played some Curling instead of bowling with his friends. He wasn't as keen on ski-related sports but was adept both in alpine and cross county and once Poland got overtaken by "Małyszomania" effect in the early 2000s he, of course, tried his luck in Ski Jumping, but it wasn't for him. Overall Jerwa had a happy and very active childhood that certainly shaped his future and future, adult, interests. He also started playing regular season hockey in the local youth league, but it's nearly impossible now to find any records of those games, but he was certainly enjoying it and played every position depending on the team need, whether it was his current defenceman position or forward or even goalie when a team was desperate.

High School & College

The first big decision for future Jerwa's sports career awaited when he had to choose his future school and his talent was noticed by Sweeden High School. It was a big decision, but he decided to move and play for the youth team of Malmö Redhawks, which was a perfect choice since they are famed for their program and he was promised a place on the first team as soon as he turned 16 years. During youth team days it was apparent he is the prototypical team & pass-first defenceman that you can rely on penalty kill opportunities and build up play. He was also very local, despite struggling at first with the local language. He played there for several years, in both youth & senior teams hoping to be noticed by the biggest leagues across the world. When he heard about VHL and their Junior league VHLM recruiting players in recruitment efforts he decided to pack his back and try the luck, especially with many teams playing in Europe, giving him better opportunity to stay connected with family & friends. He averaged in Sweden 0.5 APG, 0.2 GPG and 2 Shots Blocked per game, though it was evident he isn't chasing hits he was able to have an average of one hit per game too.

 

VHLM & Saskatoon Days

Piotr joined the league at the very end of S62 and was picked on waivers by Oslo team, but only to join their training camp which he is very thankful for as it was a valuable experience, even if he didn't saw any ice time. During S63 VHLM draft he has fallen down a lot, as potential GMs had many candidates that played full previous season down in the league. Finally, he landed in Saskatoon Wild in the 4th round with 20th OA pick - and that was a blessing disguise for him as he had a very strong rookie (and as it turned out only) campaign in the minor league:

GP: 72    G: 20    A: 70    P: 90    +/- : +11   SHT: 194    PIM: 51    HIT: 93    SB: 110    GW: 5    PPG: 12

That line gave him 2nd place in the Top Defenseman - Ryan Sullivan Trophy voting. Saskatoon was also unstoppable in the playoffs winning the prized Founder's Cup. While entering VHL draft Jerwa expected to return there next season, league regulations about international players and their eligibility prevented him from doing so.

 

VHL & Davos Days

Jerwa wasn't entering the draft as the highly touted prospect, instead named in various media as Glorified Welfare Player, which certainly didn't help his stock as he barreled down from first round down to the second to the tanking and devoid of any veteran talent young team of Davos HC. His stats in the rookie year took a deep dive compared to the year he had with Saskatoon:

GP: 72    G: 14 A: 31    P: 45    +/- :-22   SHT: 129 PIM: 54    HIT: 92    SB: 156 GW: 3    PPG: 1

He tried his best to be team player which is evident by 156 blocked shots, good for the 6th best in the league that season. He was also awarded Rookie 1st Team nomination in the S64 VHL Awards Show. He improvement rather steadily throughout the year, though without anything suggesting he might break out and become anything better than media suggested.

Seattle Days

During Jerwa rookie year he was apparently constantly on the trade block because he received various inquiries from GMs all over the league, but nothing materialized during the S64 games. Only after offseason was over and Seattle Bears found themselves in desperate cap situation they decided to acquire Piotr Jerwa from HC Davos in exchange for award-winning defenceman Robert Malenko & 1st Round Pick. Overall reception around the league was that it was very high price and more of a result of the cap situation than Jerwa's situation. However, you can count on Piotr being motivated by this event and to finally drop off the mantle of Glorified Welfare Player and improve in a rate his talent suggests. This is already evident by his efforts in the days following trade and inquiry about a possible extension with a team as soon as it will be possible.

Brand Venture

VHL presents players and everyone involved with a multitude of opportunities including Brand Sponsorship and once it was announced Jerwa jumped on this opportunity and became the first Brand Executive of the Haterade. While their first Sponsor's Shields Tournament in S63 wasn't successful for the Brand despite signing many marquee names, he looks forward to regrouping and competing once again in S65. This allowed Piotr to form a lot of meaningful connections and relationships that are crucial in every player's career, both on and off the ice.

 

Words: 1114
Grammar checked via Grammarly, ESL

 

 

[TheFlash 317]

Review-

 

Great job, content is well worded and didn’t ramble. I like how it covered your career, usually these are more about a player leading up to the league. So a nice touch.

[Banackock 7,633]

You’re such a bad player @majesiu

 

Good work, man.  

[uphillmoss 134]

@majesiu

review-

Overall I feel like this is well written and interesting. I really liked the opening part talking about his family legacy, especially how you tie him with a real person. However I think that you should have focused less on his stats and playing style, and more on him when he is off the ice. Even so, it was still very good